4.Chapter 5.S.St.Bricks and Bridges

Chapter 5

Bricks and Bridges

In Class - III, you have studied about different types of houses found in different parts of India.  Let us find out the types of materials used in building houses.  (a) Temporary Houses like huts, tents, tree houses and log cabins are built Loreeanne with mud, thatch, straw, bamboo and wood.  A tent is made up of canvas or nylon.  (b) Permanent Houses like bungalows, flats, villas, havelies are built with bricks, stones, cement, iron rods, glass, wood, etc.  co Lokhan lives in a village Dong across River Lohit in Arunachal Pradesh.  It is a hilly area with a very small population.  The village he home receives heavy rainfall.  Lokhan's house is made up of mud, bamboo, straw and dry leaves.  Whethimin 11 One day Lokhan's father, Ali, took him to a construction site where he worked as a helper.  On the way, they crossed a bamboo bridge.  Ali told Lokhan that there was no bridge when he was young.  He had to swim across the river to go to the other side.  Lokhan's house Lokhan was fascinated when he saw the huge construction site.  He asked his father about the building that was under Bamboo bridge 34

construction.  Different types of materials were lying around and the people were doing different jobs.  His father told him that they were building blocks of flats.  He also showed Lokhan different building materials like cement, wood, marbles, glass, tiles, iron rods and bricks.  Lokhan wanted to know how bricks were made.  Ali explained the Construction site steps involved in brick making.  Brick Making Process The main steps of brick making area von 1. Mining - Clay is mined and stored in the open to make it soft and remove unwanted oxides.  2. Tempering - Clay is mixed with water to make a dough.  35

3. Molding - a lump of mixture is taken, rolled in sand and put into a metal mold.  Sand is used so that the brick does not stick to the mold.  4. Drying - The mold is emptied onto the drying area.  After every two days, the bricks are turned over for uniform drying.  Then they are ready for baking.  5. Firing - The bricks are arranged in a kiln for baking.  It makes the bricks strong 36

Lokhan was surprised to know that the reddish - brown bricks were made in a kiln.  They were brought to construction site in trucks, Ali explained that bricks were also made by machines.  The use of modern building materials made the buildings strong and safe.  Lokhan compared the building with his small hut in the village, which was easily damaged by strong winds.  It got flooded every time it rained.  His parents had to repair the hut regularly!  Ali took his son to meet the manager of the construction site.  Lokhan was happy to see the manager's son Ayaan.  The manager told his son that Ali and Lokhan lived on the other side of the river.  Lokhan told Ayaan that they had to cross a bamboo bridge.  Ayaan had seen many types of bridges but had never crossed a bamboo bridge!  The development in science and technology has made it possible to do you know?  construct strong bridges across water The early bridges were made bodies, mountains, valleys, etc.  They by nature like a fallen tree on help in the easy movement of people, a river, stream and pond.  goods and vehicles.  Ayaan showed Lokhan the pictures of some bridges in India.  Types of Bridges 1. Suspension Bridge - It can cover a long distance.  The earlier suspension bridges were made of wood and rope.  But now they are made of steel.  SORT Lakshman Jhula on River Ganga in Rishikesh (Uttarakhand) 37

2. Cantilever Bridge - They support the load through diagonal bracing.  It often uses truss (tie up) formations both below and above the bridge.  ROAD HDMAP Howrah Bridge on River Hoogli located in Kolkata (West Bengal 3. Cable Stayed Bridge - It uses short cables that are attached to pillars. Bandra Sea Link Bridge in the Arabian Sea, Mumbal (Maharashtra) Do You Know? Some other types of  bridges are (a) Truss Bridge (b) Movable Bridge Rajahmundry Railway Bridge on River Godavari (Andhra Pradesh) Golden Bridge in Bay of Bengal at Rameshwaram (Tamil Nadu) 38

(c) Beam Bridge (d) Arch Bridge Gandhi Setu in Patna Godavari Arch Bridge in Rajahmundry (Andhra Pradesh) Lokhan enjoyed learning about brick - making and different types of bridges from Ayaan.  He was amazed to see modern methods and materials of constructions.  He decided to become an engineer and design some wonderful bridges!  Road Do You Know?  Flyovers are the bridges built over roads to ease the movement of traffic.  39

Chapter 3

Celebrating Our Diversity

SCHOO The entire DAV School was beautifully decorated with flags.  streamers, flowers and rangoli (floor art).  The Principal and the Head Girl were greeting the guests.  Some students were applying tilak and welcoming everyone respectfully.  The school band was playing a welcome tune.  The atmosphere was filled with fun and gaiety.  The School was organizing an Inter - House Celebration and the theme was - The Indian Culture.  The six houses of the school were ready with their presentations that highlighted the unique diversity of our country.  They had carefully selected some special occasions that are celebrated in different parts of our country.  The students had collected the information with the help of their parents, teachers, the library and the internet.  They had put in a lot of effort in preparing posters, stage properties, scripts and costumes for each presentation.  The program was inaugurated with the lighting of the lamp by the Chief Guest.  The Principal delivered the welcome speech.  18

Ganesh Chaturthi - Presented by Hansraj House The House Captain Narrated that Ganesh or Vinayak Chaturthi is dedicated to the birth of Lord Ganesh, the God of good beginning, knowledge, success, wisdom and remover of obstacles.  The festival is celebrated in the month of August or September, mainly in Maharashtra and South India.  The curtain rose to show people buying idols of Ganpati.  The images were then taken home, worshipped with kumkum, flowers, fruits and sweets.  Lord Ganesh After the celebration, the images were taken out in a procession for visarjan (immersion into a river or sea) after a few days.  The children chanted Ganpati bappa moraya, pudchya varshi laukaraya (Father Ganpati, come again soon next year).  Do you know?  The great freedom fighter, Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak made Ganesh Utsav a public celebration by inculcating a pride for Indian culture, music, poetry and dance.  Navratri - Presented by Dayanand House The Navratri celebration of Gujarat was presented with Garbha and Dandiya Raas.  The girls were dressed in ghaghra - choli - odhini, and the boys wore dhoti - kurtas.  The narrator explained - Navratri is celebrated for nine nights and Goddess Durga is worshipped.  The period is considered an auspicious time to start new ventures.  It is celebrated twice a year.  In some places, people worship young girls as Dandiya Paas 19

Goddess Durga and offer them puri, halwa, channe and other gifts on the eighth day - ashtami do you know?  In West Bengal, Durga Puja is celebrated in Puja Pandals.  After South Indian states of Tamil Nadu, the celebration, the beautifully Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh decorated idols are taken in a celebrate Navratri as Bommai Kolu procession and immersed in a when they decorate their homes pond or a river.  with dolls.  The spectators, who were watching the presentation, clapped when they saw the pond that the children had created with light blue sarees!  Navratri and Durga Puja are celebrated as Dusshera in Northern India.  The celebrations continue for ten days.  The festival ends when the effigies of Ravana, Kumbhakarana and Meghnada are set afire to celebrate the victory of good over evil.  Dusshera Durga Puja Id - ul - Fitr Presented by Vivekanand House The House Captain Narrated - Id - ul - Fitr is celebrated by Muslims at the end of Ramadan, the ninth lunar month.  Ramadan is a month long fasting when Muslims offer Salat (prayers), recite Quran, follow good behavior and donate for the needy.  Id - ul Fitr is a day of joy and thanksgiving.  It is also a day of forgiving and forgetting ill people offering prayers on the eve of Id - ul - Fitr 20

feelings towards others.  The family Do You Know?  elders give 'ldi' - presents or money The lunar calendar depends on to the youngsters as blessings.  The movement of moon around A student dressed in sharara the earth and the solar calendar kameej and dupatta told everyone depends on the motion of earth that the holy book of Muslims, the around the sun.  Quran, came into existence during this month.  Prophet Mohammad was chosen by God to be his messenger.  Onam: The Carnival of Kerala - Gandhi House A girl dressed in white cotton saree with a golden border narrated Onam is the harvest festival of Kerala.  It marks the homecoming of the legendary King Mahabali.  It is celebrated in the beginning of the month of Chingam, the first month of Malayalam calendar.  The Legend of King Mahabali King Mahabali was a demon king of Kerala.  His rule was a period of golden age.  People were very happy, prosperous and lived in harmony.  His rule came to an end when Lord Vishnu took the avatar of a Vamana and pushed King Mahabali deep into the earth to destroy his ego.  Because of his love of people, the Lord granted King Mahabali a wish that he could visit his kingdom once a year.  The highlights of Onam are Pookalam (floral rangoli), new clothes for the family, and the grand feast called Onasadya.  It consists of various types of curries (parippu, sambhar, rasam), kootu, pappadam, pradhaman, paisam, rice, mango pickle and coconut chutney.  The Snake - boat races and the famous Kathakali dance attract thousands of tourists to Kerala.  Do you know?  Pulikkali Tiger Dance is a popular feature of Onam celebration where hundreds of men, dressed as tigers, dance to the beat of drums.  It takes four hours to paint and decorate each person to look like a lion!  The best dancer and decorated lion man are awarded prizes!  21

Navroz - Presented by Sarojini House The House Captain Narrated - Jamshed - e - Navroz is a Parsi New Year.  It is celebrated on the first day of the first month of Shehenshahi calendar which is followed by followers of Zoroastrian faith.  The festival celebrates rejuvenation and rebirth.  Parsis clean and decorate their homes with rangolis made up of jasmine and rose flowers.  Do you know?  Parsis are a small religious community of India.  They arrived in Gujarat region from Iran.  A major part of Parsi population lives in Mumbai.  They are the followers of the Iranian prophet Zoroaster.  The holy book of Parsis is Zend Avesta.  On Navroz, the Parsis offer their prayers in a Synagogue, the fire temple.  They wish Sal - Mubarak to each other and exchange gifts.  The special feast on Navroz includes faluda, saffron pulao and ravo (made of semolina and dates).  Fresh fruits, dried fruits and a variety of seeds are also served.  Do you know?  Parsis go to the synagogue thrice on Navroz to worship Khorshed and Meher, the two divine beings, who preside over the sun and the moon respectively.  Marriage Celebrations - Presented by Nehru House The House Captain Narrated - India is a land of diverse cultures and religions.  Each region / community has its own unique way of celebrating weddings.  Different wedding rituals are followed in different parts of our country.  Many traditions are common among different communities.  A PowerPoint Presentation displayed wedding celebration in various cultures on a big screen.  A fun - filled presentation showcased various rituals of a Hindu Wedding like mehndi, sangeet, baraat, kanyadaan, sindoor, seven pheras and vidai.  The audience loved the folk dances and songs that were sung at different occasions.  The second presentation showed a Sikh Wedding, Anand Karaj, at a Gurudwara.  The ceremony was presided over by Bhaiji - a priest.  The hymns 22

were recited from the Guru Granth Sahib, the holy book of Sikhs.  The bride and groom went around the Guru Granth Sahib four times.  The ceremony was very beautiful.  Christian Wedding was conducted by a priest in a church.  The bride was wearing a beautiful white dress and a white veil.  The groom was dressed in a suit.  The couple exchanged rings and accepted each other as husband and wife in the presence of family members and friends.  The wedding ceremony was followed by reception where the wedding cake was cut by the couple.  Hindu wedding Sikh wedding Christian wedding The marriage rituals may differ but the essence of all weddings is the union of a couple and bonding of the two families.  The Inter - House Celebration came to an end with a lot of appreciation for the students and teachers who had presented the best features of Indian culture in a wonderful way.  23